Step 3: Develop a plan

Seven key goals

• 1. Improve understanding

  Strive to become a workplace where everyone has an understanding of mental health and wellbeing, and the signs and symptoms of mental health conditions and their potential impact.

  Actions

  • Provide information and resources about the signs and symptoms of common mental health conditions and suicide risk
  • Provide information about workplace and external support services that staff can access, noting confidential options.
  • Promote events such as Australian Mental Health Week and World Mental Health Day, RUOK? Day, and WorkSafe Health and Safety Week/Month.
  • Ensure staff are aware of their roles and responsibilities regarding mental health in the workplace, including legal obligations.
  • Include staff families in communications about mental health and wellbeing initiatives and support services wherever possible, recognising the important relationship between work and home life (e.g. you may invite families to come to a breakfast to celebrate R U OK? Day, or make resources and internal support services (e.g. EAP) available to all staff and their immediate family)

  On this website, you can find a number of educational and training programs that can assist with this, as well as resources you can download or order for your staff.

  Further reading and resources

  • Beyond Blue Workplace mental health awareness online training
  • Understanding depression and anxiety (PDF, 12pg, 470KB)
  • Anxiety and depression: An information booklet (PDF, 60pg, 2.86MB)
  • Wallet card - Looking after your mental health in the workplace (PDF, 8pg, 461KB)
  • Taking care of your mental health in the workplace (PDF, 20pg, 3.35MB)
  • We've made mental health a priority A3 Poster (PDF, 1.32MB)

• 2. Address risks and protective factors

  Protect individuals by addressing workplace risk and protective factors to decrease the likelihood of staff developing a mental health condition, and prevent those who are experiencing a mental health condition from becoming more unwell. 

  To help determine your actions you may need to review your considerations as this will have helped to identify a number of specific risks.

  Actions

  • Develop an understanding of what workplace stressors are relevant to your organisation.
  • Adopt a risk management approach that considers a range of factors affecting the mental health of your staff including;
    • organisational factors - work design, including low levels of control, shift work, long working hours, lack of supports and poor communication
    • operational factors - exposure to trauma, occupational violence, for example police and emergency services and health services will be at risk of this.
    • environmental factors - exposure to noise, vibration, temperature, lighting, and or fumes
    • individual factors - acknowledge that people will respond to different stressors at work in different ways, and at different points in time.
    • consider staff who may be at greater risk of experiencing stress or a mental health condition (e.g. isolated workers or young workers).
  • Establish a process to monitor risks and consult directly with staff to discuss and develop solutions. This may also be a good time to engage a risk manager from within your organisation for assistance.

  Resources

  • Department of Commerce WA's Psychologically safe and healthy workplaces: Risk management approach toolkit

• 3. Foster an anti-bullying culture

  Bullying is a serious issue in workplaces across Australia and a risk factor for anxiety, depression and suicide.

  While we often think about bullying as an individual or interpersonal issue, Beyond Blue research (PDF) shows that broader environmental factors, such as poor organisational culture or a lack of leadership, are in fact the main drivers.

  The most effective way to stamp out bullying is to stop it before it starts. This means creating a strong, consistent approach to prevent inappropriate behaviour from escalating, and a positive, respectful work culture where bullying is not tolerated.

  However, strategies to manage workplace bullying, in case it does occur, should also be developed so the behaviour can be dealt with quickly and effectively.

  Actions

  • Manage workplace stress and risks: Poorly defined roles and systems of work are a risk factor for bullying. Ensuring your employees understand their roles and have the appropriate skills and resources to do their job helps to reduce issues and conflict that could lead to bullying.
  • Promote positive leadership styles by training managers and supervisors in communicating effectively and engaging staff in decision-making.
  • Educate all staff about bullying behaviour, so they understand what appropriate and inappropriate behaviours are. Empower staff to identify the source of any bullying and act promptly to resolve issues.
  • Create or improve policies and protocols around workplace bullying, setting a zero-tolerance approach. Check out Safe Work Australia's workplace bullying policy (DOCX) to give you some ideas, or use Comcare’s bullying policy checklist to help identify any areas for improvement to your current bullying policy.
  • Implement confidential reporting and response procedures for when bullying occurs, treating all matters seriously. Ensure policies and procedures protect anyone who reports or witnesses workplace bullying from victimisation. Ensure you communicate the policies and procedures to staff so they know where to go and what to do.

  Further reading and resources

  • Safe Work Australia's Guide for preventing and responding to workplace bullying
  • Safe Work Australia’s Dealing with workplace bullying – a worker’s guide
  • 10 tips to tackle workplace bullying

• 4. Promote positive mental health and wellbeing

  Many actions which address mental health risks in the workplace also contribute to positive mental health and wellbeing. However, there are specific steps organisations can take to help employees feel happy, competent and satisfied in their role. 

  Promote mental health and staff wellbeing by developing positive aspects of work as well as worker strengths and rewarding positive behaviour.

  Actions

  • Focus training and development of managers on positive, proactive leadership practices, including promoting employee strengths, providing constructive feedback and recognition, supporting employee growth, and matching employee skills and goals with jobs.
  • Provide opportunities for staff to have a say in how the wider organisation is run. For example, invite champions to be part of the mental health strategy, set up drop boxes for ideas, or have open discussions in meetings on a regular basis.
  • Promote healthy living, including healthy eating, physical activity, non-smoking and alcohol / substance control. This may be done via a designated wellness committee that issues tips on healthy living. If possible, provide exercise options close to work by negotiating discounts on local gym memberships, or provide exercise during lunch breaks, e.g. yoga or running / walking groups. 
  • Encourage mindfulness as a simple and effective way for people to reduce stress.
  • Emphasise the positive aspects of an organisation by recognising and celebrating achievements and praising effort as well as results.
  • Recognise and praise the strengths of staff, and provide opportunities for them to develop skills.

  Further reading and resources

  • Superfriend – Promoting positive mental health in the workplace
  • Victorian Workplace Mental Health Wellbeing Collaboration
  • Wellbeing at work: a review of the literature (PDF, 56pg, 650KB)

• 5. Combat stigma

  Stigma is a barrier to people with mental health conditions seeking support and can prevent people being supportive of each other. It can also result in workplace practices where people with a mental health condition are excluded or discriminated against.

  Actions

  • Invite external speakers with a personal experience of recovery and management of a mental health condition or suicidal thinking to share their story in the workplace, or show a video of someone with a personal experience.
  • Encourage senior leaders and managers to speak openly about mental health (ZIP) in the workplace and actively participate in activities and events aimed at reducing stigma. This may include, for example, openly supporting mental health awareness week.
  • Ensure workplace policies and practices are inclusive of people with a mental health condition.
  • Establish a track record of supporting staff with mental health conditions to stay at or return to work, by providing reasonable adjustments. This can be very powerful, as staff will notice how someone is being supported and valued.
  • Provide peer support where staff with a personal experience of recovery from a mental health condition support other staff with a mental health condition.

• 6. Support employees with mental health conditions, regardless of the cause

  Provide early intervention to support employees with mental health conditions regardless of the cause, so all staff feel supported and able to seek assistance early and recover faster.

  Actions

  • Provide skills-based training to managers and leaders that focuses on identifying possible signs that someone is not coping, and how to approach and support someone they’re concerned about.
  • Provide and promote access to a range of internal and external mental health supports, including confidential options. Managers should be able to direct staff to where they can get the help they need.
  • Have clear policies in place that outline how to develop stay-at-work or return-to-work plans for staff with mental health conditions.
  • Provide flexibility, where possible, regarding work hours and tasks for people to stay at and return to work, prioritising mental health and wellbeing above performance expectations.

  Further reading and resources

  • Online and face to face educational programs, including:
  • Beyond Blue National Workplace Program
  • Toolbox Talk training program
  • What would you do? Approaching an employee you’re concerned about online learning module
  • Fact sheet: Managing someone with a mental health condition (PDF, 4pg, 585KB)

• 7. Prevent suicide

  Suicide is a major public health issue in Australia, with more than eight people dying every day.² Suicide is the leading cause of death for Australians aged between 15 and 44.³

  With this in mind, it is important to recognise the important role workplaces can play in raising awareness and providing early intervention and support.

  Actions

  • Invite guest speakers with a personal experience of suicide, or who have lost someone to suicide to share their stories in the workplace, or present a video of people with a personal experience.
  • Develop clear policies and protocols around suicide prevention and response.
  • Provide education to all staff on the warning signs of suicide and key resources available to assist staff (and/ or their family members or friends) at risk. This could be done annually on World Suicide Prevention Day. 
  • Provide additional support to staff who have lost a friend, family member or a colleague to suicide. If appropriate, encourage them to make use of your Employee Assistance Program (if you have one), and allow them some flexibility in terms of their work hours and responsibilities while they are grieving.

  Further reading and resources

  • Supporting someone in the workplace at risk of suicide (PDF, 4pg, 346KB)